Plain-language guides, from ITA to eCOPR.

How Express Entry works

The Express Entry journey from creating a profile to landing as a permanent resident, in plain language.

Who qualifies for Express Entry

Eligibility for Federal Skilled Worker, Canadian Experience Class, Skilled Trades, and PNP, in plain language.

Canadian Experience Class (CEC)

The Express Entry program built for people who have already gained skilled work experience inside Canada.

Healthcare stream

How healthcare and social services workers enter the Express Entry pool and why IRCC runs dedicated category-based draws for this group.

Trades stream

How skilled trades workers qualify for Express Entry through the Federal Skilled Trades Program and through category-based draws targeting trades occupations.

French-language proficiency stream

How candidates with strong French skills qualify for dedicated Express Entry draws through category-based selection.

Provincial Nominee Program (PNP): Express Entry-aligned streams

How a provincial nomination through an Express Entry-linked stream adds 600 CRS points and virtually guarantees an Invitation to Apply.

Education stream

How workers in education occupations qualify for Express Entry category-based draws targeting teachers and related education professionals.

Provincial Nominee Programs (PNP): the base immigration streams

How base Provincial Nominee Program streams work, how they differ from the Express Entry-aligned PNP path, and where to find your province.

Alberta's Provincial Nominee Program: the Alberta Advantage Immigration Program (AAIP)

Alberta's AAIP runs eight active streams — seven base streams for workers and entrepreneurs who apply directly to the province, plus one Express Entry-aligned stream with four sector pathways that adds 600 CRS points to a federal profile.

British Columbia's Provincial Nominee Program: the BC Provincial Nominee Program (BC PNP)

British Columbia's BC PNP runs eight active streams — Skilled Worker and Health Authority (each with a base and an Express Entry BC-aligned version), three Entrepreneur Immigration streams (Base, Regional, Strategic Projects), and the temporary Rural/Remote Health Support Initiative — screening for job offers from BC employers, business investment and management experience, or a time-limited health-support pilot for support staff in rural and remote communities.

Manitoba's Provincial Nominee Program: the Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program (MPNP)

Manitoba runs three active base streams — Skilled Worker, International Education, and Business Investor — applied to directly through the MPNP's two-stage Expression of Interest (EOI) process: a 100-point self-assessment eligibility worksheet with a minimum of 60 points, followed by ranking on a separate 1,000-point EOI grid for draws, with no Express Entry profile required (though nominees who hold one can still link it for 600 CRS points).

New Brunswick's Provincial Nominee Program: the New Brunswick Provincial Nominee Program (NBPNP)

New Brunswick's PNP currently runs six active pathways — five base streams (Skilled Worker, Strategic Initiative, Business Immigration, the Critical Worker Pilot, and the Private Career College Graduate Pilot Program) plus one Express Entry-aligned stream — spanning job-offer-driven skilled workers, Francophone connections, entrepreneurs, employer-sponsored critical workers, career-college graduates, and Express Entry candidates seeking a 600-point CRS boost.

Newfoundland and Labrador's Provincial Nominee Program: the Newfoundland and Labrador Provincial Nominee Program (NLPNP)

The NLPNP runs five active streams — four base streams (Skilled Worker, International Graduate, International Entrepreneur, and International Graduate Entrepreneur) that nominate directly to the province, plus one Express Entry-aligned stream (Express Entry Skilled Worker) that adds 600 CRS points to a federal profile — screening candidates on a qualifying NL job offer, in-province education, or a qualifying local business investment.

Northwest Territories's Provincial Nominee Program: the Northwest Territories Nominee Program (NTNP)

The Northwest Territories Nominee Program runs five active streams — Skilled Worker, NWT Express Entry, Entry Level/Semi-Skilled Occupations, Francophone, and Business — four of them base pathways built around an NWT job offer or business investment, plus one Express Entry-aligned pathway that adds 600 CRS points to an existing federal profile.

Nova Scotia's Provincial Nominee Program: the Nova Scotia Nominee Program (NSNP)

A look at the NSNP's four active streams — three base streams and one Express Entry-aligned — and what each is looking for.

Ontario's Provincial Nominee Program: the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP)

Since a 2026 redesign, Ontario runs one active OINP stream, the Ontario Workforce Priority stream, which nominates skilled workers with a qualifying Ontario job offer (or self-employed physicians without one) either as a base provincial nomination or, for Express Entry-eligible candidates, an Express Entry-aligned nomination worth 600 CRS points.

Prince Edward Island's Provincial Nominee Program: the PEI Provincial Nominee Program (PEI PNP)

PEI PNP runs seven active streams: one Express Entry-aligned stream that adds Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) points to a federal profile, five base Labour Impact streams built around a PEI job offer, and one base Business Impact stream for entrepreneurs who invest in and manage a PEI business.

Saskatchewan's Provincial Nominee Program: the Saskatchewan Immigrant Nominee Program (SINP)

The Saskatchewan Immigrant Nominee Program (SINP) runs four active streams across two categories — International Skilled Worker and Saskatchewan Experience — three base streams you apply to directly and one Express Entry-aligned stream that adds 600 CRS points, each looking for candidates whose occupation, job offer, or Saskatchewan work history matches the province's labour market needs.

Yukon's Provincial Nominee Program: the Yukon Nominee Program (YNP)

Yukon runs four active nomination streams — one Express Entry-aligned (Yukon Express Entry) and three base streams (Skilled Worker, Critical Impact Worker, and the Yukon Business Nominee Program) — each looking for a Yukon job offer or a qualifying business investment.

Spousal Sponsorship (Inland)

If your spouse or partner is already living in Canada with you, inland sponsorship lets them apply for permanent residence from here, and they can usually work while they wait.

Spousal Sponsorship (Outland)

If your spouse or partner is outside Canada, outland sponsorship lets them apply for permanent residence from abroad, with freer travel during the wait and a right to appeal a refusal.

Parents & Grandparents Program (PGP)

The PGP is Canada's family-class permanent residence pathway for parents and grandparents of citizens and PRs, accessed through a randomized intake with limited annual spots.